Community asked to 'Bite Back' to fight tick-borne diseases

Sunday, October 7, 2012

LOUDONVILLE -- With the number of cases of Lyme and other tick-borne diseases steadily on the rise, the Tick-Borne Disease Alliance is biting back. This nonprofit, created with a mission to eradicate all tick-borne illnesses, will host the first run/walk in its national series, "Bite Back for a Cure: The TBDA Walk/Run to Fight Tick-Borne Diseases," on Oct. 20.

"Bite Back for a Cure" is spearheaded by local resident Heidi Buono, who suffers from Lyme Disease, along with her three young children. Heidi became sick with Lyme in 2008, but realized that the fight against Lyme Disease is about more than just her own health--it's about putting an end to the torment of tick-borne diseases once and for all. She organized "Bite Back for a Cure" in the Albany area to raise awareness for these illnesses that often go unnoticed or misdiagnosed due to the lack of information -- and even misinformation -- surrounding them.

"I was inspired to do something positive with this huge negative that has affected me and my family's life," said Buono. "So many families in our area have been ravaged by Lyme Disease--and there are still others out there that don't even know this is the cause of their problems. Our goal is to raise awareness of Lyme and other tick-borne diseases throughout the Albany area because an educated community is simply a healthy community."

The Center for Disease Control has singled out Lyme Disease as the most common and fastest growing vector-borne, infectious disease in the country. At this time, there are no vaccines to prevent Lyme Disease or co-infections occurring in the United States and available diagnostic tools have proven to be unreliable. Many sufferers of tick-borne illnesses are unaware that they are victims of these diseases due to a lack of understanding of the symptoms and because available diagnostic testing is not reliable. Awareness is extremely important for prevention, early diagnosis and effective treatment.

"The Tick-Borne Disease Alliance was created to bond together the tick-borne disease community and address this issue from a unified front, said David Roth, co-chairman of TBDA.

The race is sponsored in-part by local members and organizations in the community, such as a Lyme-literate doctor, who will also speak at the event.

"Bite Back for a Cure" will take place on Oct. 20, 2012, at The Crossings of Colonie, located at 580 Albany Shaker Road, Loudonville. The 5K run will begin at 11 a.m. with a 1.5M walk beginning shortly after. More information and registration is available at http://tbdalliance.org.